Having half a boat isn’t much better than having no boat at all, but the crew of the S.S. Pendelton had to make do when it’s hull was torn in two during a 1952 nor’easter. Bobbing in 70-foot swells, the vessel waited for Coast Guard Captain Bernie Webber and his crew, who came to the rescue in a small, wooden boat and braved the fierce and frigid seas in effort to save the men on board.
If that sounds like it would make a good movie to you, Disney agrees.
Based on the 2009 book of the same name, The Finest Hours is the studio’s take on the true story and it has assembled an all-star cast (Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Eric Bana, Ben Foster) to tell the tale of perhaps the greatest small-boat rescue in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.
This second trailer (embedded above) sets the tone early on when, at 0:15, a crew-member goes topside to assess the damage done by the storm and finds 50 percent less boat than he expected to. From there, it’s pretty much wall-to-wall action and — unlike the first trailer — we spend the bulk of this spot in the heart of the storm. If you’re a fan of classic man-versus-the-elements survival stories, this should be right up your alley.
The film, of course, bears quite a few similarities to The Perfect Storm (2000): Adapted from a book, set off the coast of Massachusetts, raging weather, wrathful seas, harrowing rescue attempts, etc. Though the earlier film was somewhat underwhelming, it seems like this disaster drama has a chance to be a more compelling, less universally depressing spiritual successor.
With a January 29, 2016, theatrical release, the film will arrive on the heels of Ron Howard’s whale tale In the Heart of the Sea, which casts away December 11, 2015, and the holiday movie season should feature enough ocean-faring drama to keep even the scurviest of sea dogs satisfied.
